Sloping Altars
Sloping Altars is the sixth book in the Blood Moon series, eighth chronologically speaking. It follows the journeys of Vaekosa, a prisoner of war and Nabuku, a stoic warrior as they seek stability in a world coming apart at the seams. The Big Picture The Warlocks Nazlaieqk and the other warlocks manipulate the kiasyd into compromising Tolnor through religious jyhad. Order's supposed last line of defence is under siege politically as well as from within. Redvaks Bok, whose soul has returned as a horrifying acheri in the body of a noble child, also coordinates with outside forces to target Prince Saam II, the king's young son. ''' '''The Pirates Meanwhile, Vaeliang has a final use for Dru'Wan and his pirate fleet - the summoning of Kraken, Oblivion's most powerful servant, from the depths of the ocean trenches. Dru'Wan and his fleet raid all lands for captives and human sacrifices for the great ritual to summon the demonic goddess from the depths of the deepest ocean trench. The Protectorate The Protectorate has started to crumble with the revelation of Akoman's schemes and rumours of dark forces moving along the fringes of Naen. The public panics, and the clergy of Tyrevor leave the covenant, leading to internal chaos. The weakening of Asmodeus' power due to the attack upon the Pit means he struggles to maintain the other deities' faith in his reliability. The conspiracy of Bishop Akoman revealed, and in the wake of the Tyrevoran purge, the Protectorate is in turmoil and splinter factions vie for dominance as others actively abandon the sect. House Aiataar The talfar seek to leverage Tolnor into accepting massive loans of silver to provide for the thousands of refugees fleeing the oncoming kiasyd armies. They use many corrupt noblemen to aid in this scheme. The talfar bribe and corrupt various noble elites within Tolnor, attempting to sow chaos and dissent within the Jewel of the North. Their aim is to offer aid to a new leadership in the wake of a wave of panic-stricken peasants arriving at the city-state due to kiasyd attacks on their farmlands. Prologue House Venzor is about to celebrate the birth of their newest child. However, when the babe is brought forth into the world, something is terribly wrong. When it opens its eyes, the screaming begins. Alizan Droh is passing through a village he suspects is the centre of a coming incident of significance. Sure enough, as he talks with locals, a hunting party returns to the settlement accompanied by horrid screams. One of the party is inflicted with an occult symbol of Oblivion - the Black Circle. As the horrific sigil crawls across his flesh, Alizan Droh knows that his worst fears have been confirmed - the warlocks have returned. Alizan Droh meets with fellow magi at the Academy and finds his revelation at the village is not isolated - other settlements the continent over, even a few orcish ones, have fallen prey to the nihilistic caress. Part One Arc One * Introduce the world and tone of the story * Introduce main character with an entrance * Foreshadow the moral change - the character's flaw * Introduce the other major players * Plan other props/skills of the character through their backstory Chapter I (Vaekosa): '''Vaekosa's tribe makes preparations to attend the 7th Conclave of High Night, a meeting of tremendous religious significance at which all kiasyd tribes attend. '''Chapter II (Nabuku): Chapter III (Vaekosa): '''Vaekosa and her uncle Caravee attend the Conclave, while Arkala Pastrea Vokunda proclaims that holy war is upon their people. Their enemy is the human city-state of Tolnor. '''Chapter IV (Nabuku): Chapter V (Vaekosa): '''Vaekosa and her tribe make ready to depart and assault a human garrison of soldiers on the edge of the Dark Forest. '''Chapter VI (Nabuku): Arc Two * The character resists their call to action Chapter VII (Vaekosa): 'Vaekosa battles humans at the edge of the forest, but becomes separated from her pack. She is almost captured and brutalised by human deserters, but is rescued by a Tolnorian captain named Cade, who then takes her as a prisoner of war. '''Chapter VIII (Nabuku): ' '''Chapter IX (Vaekosa): '''Cade and Vaekosa survey the battlefield's slaughter, mourning losses on their respective sides. They camp out for the night under the stars and then depart for Tolnor. '''Chapter X (Nabuku): Chapter XI (Vaekosa): '''Vaekosa is led into the great northern city by Cade, who tries to ensure she is treated respectfully. She is placed within a holding cell to await interrogation. '''Chapter XII (): Arc Three * The first half-hearted attempt at action is shot down Chapter XIII (Vaekosa): ' '''Chapter XIV (Nabuku): ' '''Chapter XV (Vaekosa): Chapter XVI (Nabuku): Chapter XVII (Vaekosa): Chapter XVIII (Nabuku): Arc Four * The second, genuine attempt to overcome adversity also fails * The character's flaw gets in their way * There is a strong hint at the character's need to change Chapter XIX (Vaekosa): ' '''Chapter XX (Nabuku): ' '''Chapter XXI (Vaekosa): Chapter XXII (Nabuku): Chapter XXIII (Vaekosa): '''Vaekosa leaves or escapes Tolnor to warn her people of their manipulation by the talfar fananciers. '''Chapter XXIV (Nabuku): Part Two Prelude Arc Five * Confrontation with the need to change in order to eventually succeed * The character's eyes are opened to reality - that they must "change or die" * The character retreats to lick their wounds Chapter XXV (Vaekosa): ' '''Chapter XXVI (Nabuku): ' '''Chapter XXVII (Vaekosa): Chapter XXVIII (Nabuku): Chapter XXIX (Vaekosa): Chapter XXX (Nabuku): Arc Six * Creation of a new plan of action * Now the character is prepared to take a different approach * Resolve to change for the betterment of the self and of the world Chapter XXXI (Vaekosa): ' '''Chapter XXXII (Nabuku): ' '''Chapter XXXIII (Vaekosa): Chapter XXXIV (Nabuku): Chapter XXXV (Vaekosa): Chapter XXXVI (Nabuku): Arc Seven * The character puts their final plan into action * The character is almost destroyed in some manner in the process * The tables are turned on the adversary/antagonistic element Chapter XXXVII (Vaekosa): ' '''Chapter XXXVIII (Nabuku): ' '''Chapter XXXIX (Vaekosa): Chapter XL (Nabuku): Chapter XLI (Vaekosa): Chapter XLII (Nabuku): Arc Eight * The adversary has one last opportunity to defeat the character somehow * The character fully triumphs and the world is bettered * BUT leave some form of a cliff-hanger to set up the next book in the series Chapter XLIII (Vaekosa): ''' '''Chapter XLIV (Nabuku): Chapter XLV (Vaekosa): Chapter XLVI (Nabuku): Chapter XLVII (Vaekosa): Chapter XLVIII (Nabuku): Epilogue